Knitting needles are sharp, but Sojourner Truth’s reason for knitting was even sharper. Growing up enslaved until escaping in 1827, Truth taught knitting, sewing, and cooking to the newly freed so that they could earn a living.
In an 1864 photograph titled, “I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance,” Truth sits knitting. Could Truth have used this photo to show other Black women that they have the power to be seen as more than slaves?
It’s possible. Truth was a powerful abolitionist and women’s suffragist. Truth used proceeds from her photographs to fund those causes. But there was another reason.
Truth was a master of controlling her public image. She used knitting as a means to cast herself as a wise and holy matriarch. She appeared in at least three other portraits featuring knitting.
For Sojourner Truth, knitting was a tool to move our people forward. We all have the power to use our creativity to help our people make strides toward Black liberation.